COWAL KIRK is now more than two years overdue in submitting its annual report and accounts to Scotland’s charity regulator, according to publicly available records.
The Church of Scotland parish, registered as a charity with the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR), last uploaded a full set of accounts covering the period to December 31, 2021.
OSCR’s online register currently shows that subsequent annual reports and accounts remain outstanding, with the charity now two years and three months past its statutory filing deadline.
Under Scottish charity law, charities are required to submit annual reports and accounts to OSCR within nine months of the end of their financial year.
The information is published on the public register to allow transparency around how charities operate and manage their finances.
OSCR has a range of regulatory powers but does not automatically take enforcement action where charities are engaging and working to bring their reporting up to date.
Cowal Kirk confirmed this week that the complexity of bringing five churches together into a single united congregation, (Kirn and Sandbank, St. John’s, The High Kirk, Toward and Innellan), is the reason behind the delay in submitting its annual report and accounts.
However this union has since been reduced as Innellan church in 2021 ceased to be a place of worship and was sold and last year the High Kirk in Dunoon was also put up for sale.
A Church of Scotland spokesman told this newspaper: “There has been a delay in submitting Cowal Kirk’s annual report and financial records to the Scottish charity regulator, OSCR. This is a consequence of the complexity of five churches coming together to form the united congregation. OSCR is aware of the situation and Cowal Kirk is working with an independent financial expert to ensure the report and records are submitted protected at this precarious moment.
“That protection will stem from European and Nato allies coming together, facing down blatant diplomatic bullying and asserting that international laws – if they are to mean anything – can’t be brazenly trodden over by another Nato member.
“No-one dismisses arguments around the importance of security surrounding the high north, but those same arguments can’t be used to undermine as soon as possible.”
OSCR previously confirmed that Cowal Kirk was engaging with the regulator over the issue. In July last year, when the accounts were approaching two years overdue.
An OSCR spokesperson said: “The charity has taken steps to bring its filing up to date, as evidenced by the submission of accounts for the year to December 31, 2021 in April this year. As the charity is continuing to engage with OSCR about its accounts, no further regulatory action is required at this stage.”
